I. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to large blow molded containers. In particular, the invention is directed to boxes which are designed to be mounted onto the floor bed of pickup trucks.
II. Description of the Prior Art
Due to the availability in the United States in recent years of large blow molding equipment, tool and storage boxes for pickup trucks are being manufactured from plastic. Traditionally these boxes have been manufactured using metal. The plastic boxes are preferred by a substantial portion of the market due to their appearance and strength, especially the fact that they dont't rust.
Pickup truck storage boxes utilize two basic support systems. One system relies upon the side walls of the pick up for support of the box. Such a box is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 3,987,829. The end members of the box rest over the top section of the pickup side wall. The box sits above the truck bed. This allows storage of materials beneath the floor of the box.
A second type of box does not hang on the pickup side walls but instead rests directly on the floor of the pickup truck. This box has a single or double door that opens along the length of box. The box is self supported but its floor and side walls.
Blow molded pickup truck storage boxes have suffered a number of deficiencies. Due to the size of these boxes they have taken considerable time to mold. This increased molding cycle adds significantly to the cost of the product. A second problem that is encountered with these boxes is that the sides and doors have a tendency to warp. A third significant character of plastic boxes is that they tend to leak during inclement weather or when passed through car washes.
It is an objective of the present invention to produce a large blow molded storage box which is designed to mount on the floor of a pickup truck. Advantageously the walls and the doors of the box do not exhibit warpage and support the load without bowing. Another objective is to manufacture the box with a reduced molding cycle. Finally it is the object of the invention to design such a box in a manner which precludes water leakage around the door openings.